2001 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor - Grenada
|Publisher||United States Department of Labor|
|Author||Bureau of International Labor Affairs|
|Publication Date||7 June 2002|
|Cite as||United States Department of Labor, 2001 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor - Grenada, 7 June 2002, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/48c8c9cf37.html [accessed 30 May 2016]|
Government Policies and Programs to Eliminate the Worst Forms of Child Labor
The Government of Grenada has indicated a desire to determine the extent of poverty in Grenada and possible solutions to this problem. In 1990, under the auspices of the WFP, the government began a school meals program throughout the nation's pre-primary and primary schools, a textbook program, and a program to upgrade some of the country's pre-schools. Under the school meal program, children pay a minimal fee to their school for a daily meal. The textbook program helps children from low-income families obtain the necessary tools to enhance their educational opportunities.
Incidence and Nature of Child Labor
Statistics on the number of working children under the age of 15 in Grenada are unavailable. Child labor is reportedly not a significant problem in Grenada, although some children help with the periodic harvesting of family spice or banana fields.
Education is free and compulsory in Grenada between the ages of 6 and 14 years. In 1998, the gross primary enrollment rate was 125.5 percent, while the net primary enrollment rate was 97.5 percent. Despite the high enrollment rate, poverty, poor school facilities, and the periodic need to help with family farm harvests have resulted in approximately a 7 percent absenteeism rate among primary school children.
Child Labor Laws and Enforcement
Under the Employment of Women, Young Persons and Children Act, the minimum age for employment in Grenada is 16 years. The Constitution prohibits forced labor and slavery. There are no laws that specifically address trafficking in persons and there were no reports that children were trafficked to, from, within or through the country. The Ministry of Labor enforces child labor laws in the formal sector through periodic checks. Grenada has not ratified ILO Convention 138 or ILO Convention 182.
 Grenada's GDP is one of the lowest per capita in the region. See U.S. Embassy-Bridgetown, unclassified telegram no. 1126, June 2000 [hereinafter unclassified telegram 1126].
 UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, Consideration of Reports Submitted by States Parties Under Article 44 of the Convention: Initial Reports of States Parties Due in 1992, Addendum, Grenada, CRC/C/3/Add. 55, [hereinafter Initial Reports of States Parties], p. 5, para. 24, at http://www.hri.ca/fortherecord2000/documentation/tbodies/crc-c-3-add55.htm on 11/5/01.
 Unclassified telegram 1126.
 Initial Reports of States Parties, p. 6, para. 31.
 An explanation for the high net primary enrollment rate in 1991 was unavailable. See UNESCO, Education for All: Year 2000 Assessment [CD-ROM].
 Unclassified telegram 1126.
 Employment of Women, Young Persons and Children Act, 1999, Article 32, p. 132 [copy on file].
 The Grenada Constitution Order, 1973, Chapter 1, Section 4, at http://www.georgetown.edu/pdba/constitutions/grenada/gren/73eng.html.
 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2001 – Grenada (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of State, 2001) [hereinafter Country Reports 2000], Section 6f, at http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2001/wha/8348.htm.
 Ibid at 6d.
 ILO, International Labour Standards and Human Rights Department, at http://webfusion.ilo.org/public/db/standards/normes/appl-ratif8conv.cfm?lang=en.